Lead sight for shotguns



33-2e1. OR 2,092 356 SR Search Sept. 7, 1937. r. F. PRAT HER 2,092,356

LEAD SIGHT FOR SHOTGUNS Filed March 13, 1937 qypmum is; Q

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Patented Sept. 7, 1937 UNITED STATES 593m" Room PATENT OFFICE LEAD SIGHTFOR SHOTGUNS Thomas F. Prather, Wasco, Calif.

Application March 13,

1 Claim.

This invention relates to sights for shotguns.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a front sight on ashotgun for use with a single rear peep sight wherein the target, suchas a flying duck passing horizontally across the path of the vision maybe led by the marksman at the time he fires the gun.

Another feature of the invention is to provide the front sight with anopening which when aligned with the rear sight opening is of a size thatindicates the effective killing range of the gun when the target fitsconiormably across the diameter of the sight.

Further objects of the invention are to provide a sight of the characterreferred to that provides adjustment for the front sight, that isdesigned to permit efficient and inexpensive attachment to the muzzleend of the gun, that is very easy to operate and comparativelyinexpensive to manufacture.

With the foregoing and other objects in view the invention consists of anovel construction, combination and arrangement of parts as will behereinafter more specifically described and illustrated in theaccompanying drawing wherein is disclosed an embodiment of the inventionbut it is to be understood that changes, variations, and modificationsmay be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the claimhereunto appended.

In the drawing wherein like reference characters indicate like partsthroughout the several views:-

Figure 1 is a fragmentary top plan view of a gun provided with theinvention.

Figure 2 is a rear elevation of the sight removed from the gun.

Figure 3 is a top plan view of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is an exploded view of the sight arms removed from assembledrelation.

Figure 5 is a detailed vertical section taken substantially on the planeof line 6-6 of Figure 2.

In the drawing is shown a shotgun of conventional construction andnumeral l indicates a single barrel which is mounted in the customarybreech block which breech block is mounted on the usual stock. On thetop of the breech block 2 I mount a conventional peep sight 4 and thispeep sight may be of regulation construction. A peep sight as hereindescribed is to be distinguished from open sights by the fact that allpeep sights are to be constructed with a round aperture for sightingpurposes.

The front sight is indicated at A and is formed with a split supportingring 5 of metal having a 1937, Serial No. 130,771

diameter to slip over and clamp to the muzzle end of a single barrel lof the shotgun. When assembled, the ring 5 fits snugly in tightimmovable relation just rearwardly of the muzzle end of the gun as shownin Figure 1 of the drawing. A sleeve 6 is fixed in any suitable mannerto the periphery of the ring and there is an opening extending throughthe sleeve indicated at l. The center line of the opening extendstransversely to the barrel and parallel to the cross flight of thetarget. A set screw 8 is mounted in a threaded opening 9 in the top wallof the sleeve having the inner end thereof extending into the opening I.As will hereafter appear this set screw is provided to lock the sightarms in adjusted position.

The front sight A further includes a pair of aligning members indicatedat B and C. One of the aligning members B is provided with a pair ofspaced parallel arms H], II and the other aligning member is formed witha single arm l2 which fits snugly but slidingly between the arms H], Hin the assembled relation. It will therefore be seen that in theassembled relation that the confronting arms on the members B and Coverlap each other. The confronting ends of the arms on aligning membersB and C fit snugly in the sleeve opening I and are of a Width toslidably bear on the side walls of the opening. In the assembledrelation the inner end of the set screw 8 clamps against the overlappedarms and locks them in adjusted position.

On the outer free ends of arms 10, II is fixed in any suitable manner aring member l3 having a central opening l4. Near the outer end of arm I2is an enlargement Hla providing a shoulder l above and below the armwhich provides a stop or abutment for the inner ends of the arms ID, II.The enlargement Ma is fixed in any suitable manner to a ring member Itprovided with a circular opening I1.

In the assembled relation the circular opening in the rear peep sight 4is along the center line of the barrel I. When the ring 5 is mounted onthe muzzle end of the barrel the sleeve 6 is set on the center line ofthe barrel also. With the inner ends of the arms on the aligning membersB and C arranged in the sleeve opening I the centers of the respectiveopenings M, I! will be disposed laterally, one on each side of thecenter line of the barrel. The round aperture in the peep sight 4 andthe round openings l4, IT in the front sight are selected so that theirdiameters Will coincide when trained on a duck flying transverselyacross the vision at the killing range 01 the gun which under ordinarycircumstances is forty yards. The diameters of the openings in the frontand rear sights are also selected so that when the length of the body ofa duck conforms with the transverse diameter of the aligned sights themarksman will be apprised that the duck is within killing range. On theother hand, if the body of the duck is smaller than the diameter of thesight when the front and rear sights are in alignment the marksman willknow that the duck is out of killing range. With the rear peep sightbeing disposed along the center line of the barrel a duck flyingtransversely across the line of vision is sighted through the righthandaligning member C and due to the angular disposition of the barrelrelative to the aligned sights the killing load will lead the flyingduck sufliciently to compensate for the speed of travel. A duckapproaching from the left will be sighted through the lefthand aligningmember B.

The feature of adjustability in the aligning members B and C relative tothe center line of the barrel allows adjustment of the aligning membersto compensate for variations in shooting conditions such as deflectingforce of the wind, choke of the barrel and other factors of a similarnature. It is also within the contemplation of the present invention tochange the peep sight for an aligning member B and C for differentmoving targets whose bodies when moving vary in length. It will also beseen in Figure l of the drawing that the dotted line l8 indicates theline of vision when sighting an object approaching from the right whichline passes through rear peep sight 4 and the righthand aligning memberB. Dotted line l9 indicates the aiming line through the rear peep sightand the lefthand aligning member B.

It will thus be seen that I have devised a front sight for attachment toa single barrel shotgun which particularly cooperates with a rear peepsight that not only provides an adjustable field for obtaining theproper lead on a cross flying object but also furnishes an effectivekilling range when the pattern of the object conforms with the alignedcircular openings on the sights.

Having thus described my invention, what is claimed as new is:-

A front sight for a gun, Comprising amember wciqlmection with the muzzleend of the gun, a sleeve connected with the member and extendingupwardly therefrom and having a transverse opening passing therethroughand a threaded opening extending from the upper end of the sleeve intothe first mentioned opening, a pair of ring-shaped members, a pair ofspaced parallel arms projecting from one ring-shaped member, a singlearm projecting from the other ringshaped member, said arms entering thetransverse opening in the sleeve, with the single arm located betweenthe pair of arms, and a clamping screw in the threaded opening forclamping the arms in the sleeve.

THOMAS F. PRATHER.

